Sakai in Language Courses: Present Uses and Future Possibilities

1. Sakai in Language Courses: Present Uses and Future Possibilities Ken Romeo, Ph.D. Academic Technology Specialist http://kenro.web.stanford.edu :: kenro@stanford.edu

2. Outline • Background • The Present: Sakai in the Stanford Language Center • Objectives and Results • Summative Assessment • Formative Assessment • The future: What this could be • How students study • How teachers (would like to) teach • A framework for curriculum • Heads up! This is not just about language teaching. Stanford Language Center / Academic Computing

3. Background • Me • ESL instructor (20 years) • Academic Technology Specialist (2006) • CourseWork (Sakai) team meeting observer / participant (2008) • Stanford Language Center • Language requirement • 1995 – new director: Prof. Elizabeth Bernhardt • Emphasis on assessment and professional development • This presentation • American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages (ACTFL 2007) Bernhardt, Molitoris, Miano, Gelmetti, Tsethlikai, Romeo • Sum of experience Stanford Language Center / Academic Computing

4. The Present: Sakai and the Stanford Language Center Stanford Language Center / Academic Computing

5. Assessment Program • Objectives • Improve student performance • Enhance credibility (students and the public) • Programmatic consistency • Methods • ACTFL Oral Proficiency Standards (ACTFL, 1999) • Oral Placement and Exit exams • More face-time for instructors  put diagnostic assessment online (CourseWork) Stanford Language Center / Academic Computing

6. Overview: Results • More highly trained staff • 95% go through ACTFL interview training • Over 1/3 certified • Professional conversation • 20% first year and 24% second year increase • Highly positive student reaction • Use Sakai to: • Deliver formative assessments (SAMigo) • Connect to exit assessment (enrollment & archiving) Stanford Language Center / Academic Computing

7. Foreign Language Placement • 800 unregistered students: not in Sakai • Online tests during the summer • Oral assessment on campus: 1 hour, cassette tapes Stanford Language Center / Academic Computing

8. Exit Assessment: SOPI Definition • Oral Proficiency Interview (OPI): Live • Nationally standard format – used everywhere • Simulated Oral Proficiency Interview (SOPI): Recorded • 1st year: ~10 items, 2nd year: ~20 items: • English instructions + line drawing • Thinking time • Native prompt • Response recording • Go to next item (NO USER CONTROL) • From 2008: Add a writing assessment Stanford Language Center / Academic Computing

9. SOPI Delivery • Scheduling, content creation – human hours • Software requirements • High stakes: content security and reliability • Enrollment from existing courses (Sakai) • Non-standard roles: Coordinator, instructor • No student control = no web delivery • Playback or recording • Test progression • Securely archive audio recordings (Sakai) Stanford Language Center / Academic Computing

10. SOPI Software (Project Manager: Makoto Tsuchitani) • Application (Developer: Casey Dunn) • Desktop Java application • Quicktime for Java – play and record • WebServices to communicate with Sakai • Sakai Monitor Tool (Developer: Zach Thomas) • Realtime progress of each student • UI depends on role • Packaging for further dissemination Stanford Language Center / Academic Computing

11. SOPI Application Stanford Language Center / Academic Computing

12. SOPI Monitor Tool Stanford Language Center / Academic Computing

13. Formative Assessments in Sakai • 1st year: Oral diagnostic assessments • Collaboratively developed content (audio / video / text) • SAMigo: Audio Recording applet • Resource (course) sites • 2nd year: Writing Diagnostic assessments • Collaboratively developed content (images / text) • SAMigo: Timed, short answer • Resource (course) sites Stanford Language Center / Academic Computing

14. Technology Integration: Key Points • Each part has a pedagogically valid purpose and is not focused on technology. • Uses a standalone application with connection to Sakai to do what the web can’t. • All instructors create material based on the same standards-based framework. • Implementation takes a huge number of human hours and coordination across many different groups. Stanford Language Center / Academic Computing

15. The Future: What this could Be Stanford Language Center / Academic Computing

16. Prologue: Why use an LMS at all? • Privacy and authentication • Scalability: • class  department  university (?) • Modularity: • Centrally stored, clone-able units • One portal to existing technology (connection, organization, computation, audio, video, telephony, etc.) Stanford Language Center / Academic Computing

17. How Students Study Stanford Language Center / Academic Computing

18. Increased levels of connection • Cell phones: voice and text • Sharing – small groups, whole class, future classes (Submission? Grading? Feedback?) • Online office hours • Social networking – managing multiple identities, authentication to protect privacy Stanford Language Center / Academic Computing

19. Familiarity with digital environment • New formats for work (video, etc.) • Don’t always carry laptops – often use clusters, do carry cell phones • Use multiple resources – search / self-study / scaffolding • Note: Find the least common denominator Stanford Language Center / Academic Computing

20. My Wishlist How Teachers (would like to) Teach Stanford Language Center / Academic Computing

21. Different tools for different tasks • In class teaching • Homework • Self-study Stanford Language Center / Academic Computing

22. No-brainer: Video, everywhere • Upload  ingest to streaming • Clip creation, indexing, delivery, annotation, collaboration • Control playback – just once, twice • Why streaming? Too large to download. • Why not YouTube? No privacy / authentication. (which is what Sakai does very, very well!) Stanford Language Center / Academic Computing

23. Organization (schedule, groups) • Course structure: Linear by definition • Tracking students • Integration with University registrars • Arbitrary groups of students • In/across courses/programs • Requirements, milestones, electives Stanford Language Center / Academic Computing

24. Identities (roles) • Need a departmental or other arbitrary level • Social networking (or not) … • Multiple identities • Retaining pedagogical control: Assessment • In/out groups: Fairness? Motivation? Stanford Language Center / Academic Computing

25. Assessment (SAMigo) • Control response format: • Limit and time chances to view/listen • Limit and time chances to respond • Enable large scale assessment • Get rid of all those blue books • Work with infrastructure groups: machines, space • Telephone delivery of Sakai is a killer app: • Accessibility • Very controlled linear assessment • Anyone want to be partners in a grant? Stanford Language Center / Academic Computing

26. Content creation (SAMigo) • Authoring: basic desktop tools, conversion, definitions, spell checking • Break up into modules: Re-usable, sharable, organize-able • Changing order of delivery • Changing details of content: Randomization of items / variables • Downstream control of shared content Stanford Language Center / Academic Computing

27. Reports (gradebook, etc.) • Grading on an arbitrary curve • Item analysis: Stats, test theory • Assessments / items across departments / years (aggregate-able) • Log files: Reportable numbers to stakeholders Stanford Language Center / Academic Computing

28. A Framework for the Future A Modular Curriculum Stanford Language Center / Academic Computing

29. How? • Homework: collaboration, or not – pedagogical control • Self-study: • Students who need it • Students who want to do self-study • Publicly available “open-source” set of online activities • Classroom: more in a minute … Stanford Language Center / Academic Computing

30. Why? • Textbooks = information + activities + order • Textbooks unbound  • Teacher must decide order • Information • Multiple sources • Multiple formats • Students can independently supplement • Basic unit = activity • Requires / allows creativity Stanford Language Center / Academic Computing

31. Basic curricular unit: the Activity • Re-conceptualize interactive lecture / seminar • Control information in the classroom • Elicit search / curiosity outside of the classroom • Facilitate all departments’ products • Linguists’ tree diagrams • Engineering simulations • Video • Etc. Stanford Language Center / Academic Computing

32. In the Classroom • Physical: personal interactions, hardware (or not) • Virtual: distance learning • Small group activities: • Quick, arbitrary, but airtight membership • Posting materials for each group separately • Posting product of each group separately • Quick, but controlled access to multimedia • Easy creation of multimedia product • An example: DIY fill in the blanks Stanford Language Center / Academic Computing

33. Classroom Example: DIY Fill in the Blanks • 2 groups • 2 short (30 sec) audio clips • 2 paper transcripts • 2 pairs of scissors • Each group cuts out 15 words to make a fill in the blanks problem • Exchange transcripts • Play clips (x2-3) • Group with most correct answers wins Stanford Language Center / Academic Computing

34. Digitize DIY Fill in the Blanks • Arbitrary groups • Secure content: audio and text • Modify text • Exchange text – without revealing original • Play audio • Check answers • Group collaboration Stanford Language Center / Academic Computing

35. Epilogue: Take home messages • Focus on the users: how can we change education? (ref: introduction of textbooks) • Understand what the important characteristics of pedagogy are (and are not). • Don’t just facilitate pedagogy as it is, find out where pedagogy is going by talking to expert teachers. • Focus on pedagogically valid activities – not on the tools. • Motivated students / creative teachers are NOT the problem: We need to reach everyone. Stanford Language Center / Academic Computing

36. Ken Romeo :: http://kenro.web.stanford.edu :: kenro@stanford.edu Thank you very much! Stanford Language Center / Academic Computing